Day 4 - Plan B Is Coming Into View Now...

We left the mountains behind for a day as we drove through Alberta and just barely into British Columbia today.  We actually got off track for a bit today (looking back, I could easily see how we made the mistake and could make it again) but it could have been much worse.  It all worked out, and we got to see some beautiful country that we would not have otherwise seen. 

We got an early start this morning, with plans to make it all the way to Fort Nelson.  I looked at maps to see how we could go an hour or two short of there, but other than a campground/RV park, there isn't any lodging available pretty much between Fort St. John and Fort Nelson. The weather was beautiful once again... I don't know how I get all this great weather for traveling, but I'll take it!  It's in the low 60s in northern Alberta on the last day of September.  Beautiful!

The drive reminded me a lot of the Plains... with more trees.  Lots of spruce and birch, and the birch is all bright yellow.  Because of the lack of terrain across much of the area, it isn't worth trying to take many pictures from the car.  We did go over a suspension bridge near Dunvegan... it's Alberta's only motor vehicle suspension bridge.  We've got some video, but for some reason we're having trouble uploading it.  Ok, here's a photo for you then...

After we got back on track, we headed to Dawson Creek and on to Fort St. John.  We knew we wouldn't make it to Fort Nelson, so here we stay.  Who knows where we'll make it to tomorrow, but I'm sure it'll be an adventure!  I didn't have time to create a "Plan B" before we left, but it appears Plan B is creating itself as we go along here.  Still no polar bear sightings, but we did see 2 wolves!  :) 

Day 3 - Border Patrol let us into Canada!

So you know that email funny that is written like journal entries through a dog's eyes and through a cat's eyes... and the dog's goes something like, "Day 1... it's a beautiful day! We have so many fun things to do today! Let's go out and play!... Day 2... it's a beautiful day! We have so many fun things to do today! Let's go out and play!... Day 3... it's a beautiful day! We have so many fun things to do today! Let's go out and play!.."... and the cat's goes, "Today is day 374 of my captivity..."?  Welllll... today was day 3 of my captivity...



What? Are you saying you don't have a tissue box in your wall?!?



Haha... just kidding... starting from Helena, MT:

Actually I got up a little earlier this morning so I could get in a little run before we hit the road. I was glad to find that my legs still work, but half way up my first hill... hello altitude! I had forgotten we were at about 7,000 feet - good training for me!



A mural in downtown Helena, MT



We hit the road about 9:00 again and today is the day we were hoping to go international, but not before taking some beautiful pics. Fox Pup was driving and I just couldn't put the camera down, as you can see in the attached:

**Video Coming Soon... Technical Difficulties** 



Now, several years ago we vacationed in Washington State and we spent a day in Vancouver. We still laugh about the border crossing because I was driving and was expecting a few friendly questions before being sent on my way... but was met with an officer who barked question after question at me in rapid succession while I tried to keep up. We were unsure about how today's would go, but this time Fox Pup drove and we got through in 7 minutes flat! A new record for us! It's another absolutely perfect day weather-wise today, and the border patrol officer asked Fox Pup what she does for a living and she told him she's a meteorologist and then I sat there poking her saying, "Tell him it's gonna be sunny today, tell him it's gonna be sunny today...". When he asked if she was planning to leave anything behind in Canada I'm surprised she didn't say, "Yeah, my sister!". Let's just hope the return back into the US goes just as well.

We made it through Calgary today and are spending the night about 1.5 hrs south of Edmonton.  500 more miles under our belts - about half way there! No polar bear sightings yet.

Enjoy the attached pics and video... will try to add more tomorrow.

Goose

Road Trip!

Now to change gears to our road trip from Kansas to Alaska...

Day 1:


Archway Monument on I-80 at Kearney, Nebraska

 Monday morning we hit the road. I was glad to get the trip underway. Fox Pup did accomodate my request and packed within an inch of her life, so the car had plenty of room and we were comfortable. We'll see if I still feel that way after we live in it for 7 days, but for now we're settled - and with only 2 or 3 hisses out of her "no worries kitty" ;-) Within a very short time of leaving KS it becomes obvious that even though we have an entire SUV packed strategically so kitties can roam, they all want to be in the front seats with us. They are all doing exceptionally well with all the stress so far - I hope that only continues.

The best part of today was getting 750 miles, including Kansas and Nebraska, behind us. Wyoming had more visual interest and we were able to see the Rockies in the distance before dark. I ended the day looking forward to the coming attractions.

Day 2:

Brigham City, UT

We both got up and hit the road early this morning since we had a long day ahead of us. We drove out of Wyoming and through Utah and Idaho and into Montana. Beautiful scenery in Utah, and the other states were pretty, but nothing we could do justice to on film. One thing I didn't plan for is the number of bug deaths we would cause. We're already overachieving at that, and are doing a number on Fox Pup's brandy new windshield. It is a challenge to take pics in the car with all the bugs on the windshield, but we'll keep trying. As it was getting dark tonight we were driving through some windy, mountainous terrain and I anticipate more picture opps tomorrow. Today's tally: another 750 miles. Whew!



Murder Enroute to Alaska



Fox Pup's AK Vacation - Day 10: The Twisty, Turny Road Back to Anchorage

***Note: Pictures will be added later, so please check back.  Thanks!***

Today, we drive from Valdez to Anchorage.  Perhaps our string of beautiful weather is done for this trip… it is quite foggy outside our hotel.  We get packed up and head out… and before we even start climbing the big hill to Thompson Pass, the fog clears and it’s another beautiful day.  We got a few more photos of Bridal Veil Falls since it’s in the shade rather than somewhat harsh sunlight we had the other day, and stopped for a few other photos of the Wrangell-St. Elias Mountains.  Otherwise, we trekked onward toward Anchorage.  The Glenn Highway near Anchorage gets pretty curvy… it was a very pretty (and fun) drive. 

We’ve got one more B&B to stay at on this trip, and it was a very nice one.  Room scheduling conflicts even got us an upgrade, so we couldn’t complain about that!  We headed out to dinner to the Moose’s Tooth Pub & Brewery (yes, YET another brewery… too bad we’re not actually getting any brews at these places!).  This is supposedly a favorite of the locals, so we had to give it a try.  I approve… it was a neat atmosphere with great food!  The wild berry cobbler wasn’t bad either. J

Last night in Alaska… just one more day to explore the area, and then we leave tomorrow night. 

The last full day in Alaska, Day 11, was spent in Anchorage doing odds and ends.  Not much to say here, other than we visited the Alaska Zoo and saw polar bears among other animals.  Neat to see, but since I've been spoiled by the Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita, it was hard to be very excited about the photography opportunities with all the bars and stuff between me and the animals.  This trip has been absolutely amazing... I still can't believe I get to live here very soon!  Next on this blog will be our drive to Alaska... coming soon!

FoxPup

Fox Pup's AK Vacation - Day 9: Sea Lions, Otters, and Bears... On My!!

***Note: Pictures will be added later, so please check back.  Thanks!***

This morning, we decided to start the day off by going back to the small boat harbor to see if we could find some sea animals that might want to show off for us.  Soon after we got to the dock, we found a sea lion who came pretty close to us (I’m sure he thought we might have some fish we’d like to share, but of course we didn’t).  So after a great photo session with the otter yesterday, we got a great (but quick) photo session with a sea lion.  Other than this 30 seconds or so, all we’ve really seen of the sea lions is heads sticking up out of the water as they come up for air.

After awhile at the dock, we decided to go check out the fish hatchery just outside of Valdez.  We found many more sea lions, otters, and seals there, with a couple more getting close enough to be something other than a tiny little head in the water in our photos.  There were also several bald eagles and a couple golden eagles around the hatchery (they’re smart… there were a lot of salmon there!), so it was neat to hear their calls and see them in the trees.  Overall though, they were too far away for our meager zoom lenses.

On our way back to Valdez from the hatchery, there were several cars parked on the side of the road along a bridge.  That’s a tell-tale sign that SOMETHING is lurking nearby.  We realized it was a grizzly bear… not just one, but 5 right there together.  Right in the river finding stuff to eat.  Out came the cameras once again…luckily we hadn’t put them too far away!  Just another “awesome” (have I overused that word yet??) experience in Alaska!

We drove all over Valdez looking for some shops or something open, but apparently a Sunday outside of tourist season (which ends either around Labor Day or Sept. 15^th) is pretty quiet around there.  Good thing the wildlife didn’t know about that! 

We headed back to the dock for the evening, and watched more jumping salmon, looked for otters, seals, and sea lions, and even searched for Poppy (the harbor kitty).  We found Poppy after awhile… she’s a great ambassador for the harbor!  We learned that she was found under one of the docks about 10 years ago, and has lived on one of the boats (and wandered around the docks) ever since. 

Tomorrow we head back to Anchorage.  It’s hard to believe this vacation is almost over, but at the same time it feels like we’ve been in Alaska (and away from “life”) for a long time.  Oh, and by the way… it’s still been sunny everyday!  Amazing.